Scott Hartnell doesn't mind being the villain in opposing cities. In fact, he kind of relishes the negative attention brought his way -- it usually means he's doing his job well.

And in this, what should be but still isn't an All-Star season for the Flyers power forward, there haven't been many players in the NHL doing their jobs better. But it wasn't that long ago that the bushy-headed Hartnell was a villain in Philadelphia, too.

In a city that chews up its athletes and spits them out if they don't bust their tail while in employ of one of the four franchises, Hartnell was a target of many malcontented fans at several points in his Flyers career.

He took too many dumb penalties in 2008-09. He was an outright pariah in 2009-10 until his playoff resurrection. And after that postseason didn't exactly translate to a great 2010-11, the fans were on his case again. They tracked the number of times he fell to the ice. They screamed in the direction of general manager Paul Holmgren, wondering how he could give a guy like Hartnell a no-movement clause in his contract.

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Even as recently as the start of this season, when Hartnell was toiling on third-line duty with no special teams opportunities, it was almost as if Peter Laviolette had enough of Hartnell's attitude.

Quite simply he wasn't conditioned enough to be a considered a top-end factor in the NHL. So there was a meeting between Laviolette and Holmgren in which they tried to figure what to do with Hartnell. That's when Holmgren asked Laviolette to give him one last chance -- and pair him with Claude Giroux and Jaromir Jagr on the top line.

If playing with a surefire Hall-of-Famer and a burgeoning superstar couldn't light the fire for Hartnell, then the end of the road would expeditiously approach for the 29-year-old. Hartnell got the message, and hasn't looked back since.

Entering Tuesday he had 25 goals, which was tied for fifth-best in the NHL and is five away from matching a career high with a little less than half the season to go. His 44 points had him in the top-20 in scoring. His 13 power-play goals were the best in the league. Among the top 30 scorers in the league, his plus-18 ranked fifth -- numbers that defy his usual lot in the league.

But the transformation didn't just happen because of a physical approach, but rather because of how Hartnell approached things mentally.

He could have been annoyed by the Twitter counter tracking his falls (189 before Tuesday). He could have let negative commentary eat away at him.

Instead, he disarmed the haters by embracing his quirks. He joined Twitter and became interactive with fans. He had T-shirts made referring to his on-ice stumbles, with proceeds going to charity. He fell in love with Philadelphia when he moved here in 2007, but didn't champion the city or its people regularly until this season.

Not only did Hartnell realize what he had to do to succeed on the ice, but the light bulb went off and he got it with everything else, too, becoming one of the most endearing athletes in the city.

Mike Schmidt let it torment him for a good part of his career and didn't "get it" until he was near the end -- when he wore the long shaggy wig on the field at Veterans Stadium in his first game in front of the hometown fans after ripping them during a Phils' road trip. As good as they were, guys like Donovan McNabb, Ricky Watters, Darryl Dawkins and Scott Rolen never could appreciate the town in which they played. Lance Parrish, Gregg Jeffries, Adam Eaton, Ron Solt, Glenn "Big Dog" Robinson and Chris Gratton? They were so disinterested here that never had a chance.

But Hartnell has done what none of the others could -- he has had a renaissance, gone from goat to hero, and become a fan favorite, practically overnight.

Granted, the advent of social media has made it easier for Hartnell, but it's been more than that. He's become a locker-room leader, a mentor to young players, and a joy to be around -- being one of the best players on your team has a way of making that easier.

So when the NHL realizes Jonathan Toews will miss the All-Star game because of injury, they need to add Hartnell -- the first Philly athlete to rise from the ashes of fan discontent.